topic Excel embedded as a linked OLE appears with too much empty space in AutoCAD Forum

Excel embedded as a linked OLE appears with too much empty space

Anonymous — Mon, 05 Mar 2018 09:47:51 GMT

Hello everybody

Our problem with AutoCAD 2018.1.1 and Excel 2010 is as follows

Excel-table unlinked:

In Excel, marking the desired area with the mouse from top left to bottom right,
Control-C, then into the AutoCAD model space, do Control-V and the desired Excel part
is there. Of course unlinked but so far, so good.

Excel-table linked:

In AutoCAD (model space), -> Insert, -> OLE Object ..., -> Create from File, -> Browse and

Check "Link", then select the file and press "OK". Now the Excel file is inserted but it has

on the right and on the bottom side of the actually desired area half as much width and

height with additional white space included.

The borders of the wanted area of our Excel table never extend the full space of the A4-size.

How is this unwanted white space defined? Where is it coming from?

Unfortunately you are not able to trim this OLE (unless you cut it in the layout with a

corresponding viewport). Linking works fine so far in both directions, but we do not like

the Excel OLE is adding somehow unwanted white space which we can not define. The

wrapper preview in Excel does show the desired area!

Is the problem coming with Excel or with AutoCAD? The page setup (Excel) is an A4 and it

is defined with the usual small margins all around, the inserted Excel OLE comes out nearly

as a square (100% to 99.188%) with this kind of linking. Does anyone have any idea to

solve this problem?

Regards, Chris

Re: Excel embedded as a linked OLE appears with too much empty space

jggerth — Mon, 05 Mar 2018 13:21:45 GMT

If you need to control the appearance of the imported data, you need to NOT use OLE. Explore datalinking and tablestyles instead.

OLE sorta works with AutoCAD, but only sorta. There are better ways to accomplish the same end result.

Re: Excel embedded as a linked OLE appears with too much empty space

Anonymous — Mon, 05 Mar 2018 13:58:37 GMT

Hi JGerth

Many thanks for your answer. Ok sure, your hint is one possibility but the problem is that our

engineers (which partly could, but usually don't use AutoCAD for static calculations and all the

corresponding tables) often create different Excel tables with advanced text or impressions we

also would like to insert in our drawings for additional information in an easier way.

If those tables will get no changes anymore it's ok to use them unlinked in our drawings. But

sometimes those tables are still temporary and will be finished or corrected later on, so it would

be nice this linking procedure works the same way like the unlinked procedure nicely does.

Maybe I have to pass on this problem directly to Autodesk. It's interesting it seams no-one

knows how this random space is generated. But reading around the web about Excel an OLE

showed me there are still problems to solve.

Have a nice day and thanks for replying!

Chris

Re: Excel embedded as a linked OLE appears with too much empty space

jggerth — Mon, 05 Mar 2018 14:14:04 GMT

If it's a straight excel table, then datalinking a table can update with any changes to the excel data.

If it's something fancier w/ charts and graphics etc, then another option to ensure the image in Acad is always current would be to print the excel to PDF and attach the PDF. whenever the Excel spreadsheet is updated, simply reprint the PDF over the previous version.

The thing to remember about OLE and CAD is that it's like a dancing bear -- the amazing thing is not that the bear dances well, it's that the bear dances at all!.

Re: Excel embedded as a linked OLE appears with too much empty space

TerryDotson — Mon, 05 Mar 2018 14:41:46 GMT

If neither OLE nor Tables satisfy you on Excel importing, take a look at XL2CAD.

Re: Excel embedded as a linked OLE appears with too much empty space

Anonymous — Mon, 05 Mar 2018 15:05:12 GMT

Hi again, JGearth

"The thing to remember about OLE and CAD is that it's like a dancing bear -- the amazing thing is not that the bear dances well, it's that the bear dances at all!."

So we can be glad, AutoCAD can perfectly insert an Excel-table without any linking -- but the amazing thing is AutoCAD already knows something about importing an Excel-table!

@TerryDotson

Many thanks for the hint, too!

Best regards both of you!

Chris

Re: Excel embedded as a linked OLE appears with too much empty space

Anonymous — Fri, 29 Jun 2018 09:30:16 GMT

With me, the empty rows and columns also shows up with unlinked Excel-tables

This is new in AutoCAD 2018

I have used the unlinked Excel-table as OLE object in AutoCAD ever since it became an option (R14? back in 1997?)

I despise the table-"functionality" in AutoCAD. For me it is useless.

Excel excels(!) in creating a table quick and easy - with ease and swiftness in getting the layout exactly as I want it.

Cut from Excel, paste into AutoCAD, scale, and voila - it is perfect!

I don't need a live link OLE. I don't need to keep track of an additional/extra excel file. If I need to edit the table (i.e. OLE object) I simply OLEOPEN the object, and inserts as new if I add/remove rows/columns

Now, Autodesk seems to have messed up this functionality as well...

Who can tell Autodesk not to fix things that ain't broken?!?

***sigh***

Anyone have a fix NOT involving Autocad table??

//PU

Re: Excel embedded as a linked OLE appears with too much empty space

todd36L7A — Tue, 03 Oct 2023 15:40:42 GMT

I fixed the empty space to the right of the table by making my table (which was on a MS Word sheet) extend across the entire page. The empty space that was showing was the distance to the side of the sheet.